Ezekiel’s Task as Watchman

¹⁶ At the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me:^{(A) 17} “Son of man, I have made you a watchman^(B) for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.^{(C) 18} When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,^(D)’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for^[a] their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.^{(E) 19} But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn^(F) from their wickedness^(G) or from their evil ways, they will die^(H) for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.^(I)

²⁰ “Again, when a righteous person turns^(J) from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block^(K) before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.^{(L) 21} But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.^(M)”

²² The hand of the Lord^(N) was on me there, and he said to me, “Get up and go^(O) out to the plain,^(P) and there I will speak to you.” ²³ So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River,^(Q) and I fell facedown.^(R)

²⁴ Then the Spirit came into me and raised me^(S) to my feet. He spoke to me and said: “Go, shut yourself inside your house.^{(T) 25} And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.^{(U) 26} I will make your tongue stick to the roof^(V) of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious people.^{(W) 27} But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’^(X) Whoever will listen let them listen, and whoever will refuse let them refuse; for they are a rebellious people.^(Y)

Siege of Jerusalem Symbolized

4 “Now, son of man, take a block of clay, put it in front of you and draw the city of Jerusalem on it. ² Then lay siege to it: Erect siege works against it, build a ramp^(Z) up to it, set up camps against it and put battering rams around it.^{(AA) 3} Then take an iron pan,^(AB) place it as an iron wall between you and the city and turn your face toward^(AC) it. It will be under siege, and you shall besiege it. This will be a sign^(AD) to the people of Israel.^(AE)

⁴ “Then lie on your left side and put the sin of the people of Israel upon yourself.^[b] You are to bear their sin for the number of days you lie on your side. ⁵ I have assigned you the same number of days as the years of their sin. So for 390 days you will bear the sin of the people of Israel.

⁶ “After you have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and bear the sin^(AF) of the people of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year.^{(AG) 7} Turn your face^(AH) toward the siege of Jerusalem and with bared arm prophesy against her. ⁸ I will tie you up with ropes so that you cannot turn from one side to the other until you have finished the days of your siege.^(AI)

⁹ “Take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt;^(AJ) put them in a storage jar and use them to make bread for yourself. You are to eat it during the 390 days you lie on your side. ¹⁰ Weigh out twenty shekels^[c](AK) of food to eat each day and eat it at set times. ¹¹ Also measure out a sixth of a hin^[d] of water and drink it at set times.^{(AL) 12} Eat the food as you would a loaf of barley bread; bake it in the sight of the people, using human excrement^(AM) for fuel.” ¹³ The Lord said, “In this way the people of Israel will eat defiled food among the nations where I will drive them.”^(AN)

¹⁴ Then I said, “Not so, Sovereign Lord!^(AO) I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead^(AP) or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.^(AQ)”

¹⁵ “Very well,” he said, “I will let you bake your bread over cow dung instead of human excrement.”

¹⁶ He then said to me: “Son of man, I am about to cut off^(AR) the food supply in Jerusalem. The people will eat rationed food in anxiety and drink rationed water in despair,^{(AS) 17} for food and water will be scarce.^(AT) They will be appalled at the sight of each other and will waste away because of^[e] their sin.^(AU)

Judah to Serve Nebuchadnezzar

27 Early in the reign of Zedekiah^[a](A) son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ² This is what the Lord said to me: “Make a yoke^(B) out of straps and crossbars and put it on your neck. ³ Then send^(C) word to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon,^(D) Tyre and Sidon^(E) through the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. ⁴ Give them a message for their masters and say, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Tell this to your masters: ⁵ With my great power and outstretched arm^(F) I made^(G) the earth and its people and the animals^(H) that are on it, and I give^(I) it to anyone I please. ⁶ Now I will give all your countries into the hands of my servant^(J) Nebuchadnezzar^(K) king of Babylon; I will make even the wild animals subject to him.^{(L) 7} All nations will serve^(M) him and his son and his grandson until the time^(N) for his land comes; then many nations and great kings will subjugate^(O) him.

⁸ “‘“If, however, any nation or kingdom will not serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon or bow its neck under his yoke, I will punish^(P) that nation with the sword,^(Q) famine^(R) and plague,^(S) declares the Lord, until I destroy it by his hand. ⁹ So do not listen to your prophets,^(T) your diviners,^(U) your interpreters of dreams,^(V) your mediums^(W) or your sorcerers^(X) who tell you, ‘You will not serve^(Y) the king of Babylon.’ ¹⁰ They prophesy lies^(Z) to you that will only serve to remove^(AA) you far from your lands; I will banish you and you will perish. ¹¹ But if any nation will bow its neck under the yoke^(AB) of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let that nation remain in its own land to till it and to live^(AC) there, declares the Lord.”’”

¹² I gave the same message to Zedekiah king of Judah. I said, “Bow your neck under the yoke^(AD) of the king of Babylon; serve him and his people, and you will live.^{(AE) 13} Why will you and your people die^(AF) by the sword, famine and plague^(AG) with which the Lord has threatened any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? ¹⁴ Do not listen^(AH) to the words of the prophets^(AI) who say to you, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they are prophesying lies^(AJ) to you. ¹⁵ ‘I have not sent^(AK) them,’ declares the Lord. ‘They are prophesying lies in my name.^(AL) Therefore, I will banish you and you will perish,^(AM) both you and the prophets who prophesy to you.’”

¹⁶ Then I said to the priests and all these people, “This is what the Lord says: Do not listen to the prophets who say, ‘Very soon now the articles^(AN) from the Lord’s house will be brought back from Babylon.’ They are prophesying lies to you. ¹⁷ Do not listen^(AO) to them. Serve the king of Babylon, and you will live.^(AP) Why should this city become a ruin? ¹⁸ If they are prophets and have the word of the Lord, let them plead^(AQ) with the Lord Almighty that the articles remaining in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem not be taken to Babylon. ¹⁹ For this is what the Lord Almighty says about the pillars, the bronze Sea,^(AR) the movable stands and the other articles^(AS) that are left in this city, ²⁰ which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take away when he carried^(AT) Jehoiachin^[b](AU) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem— ²¹ yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says about the things that are left in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem: ²² ‘They will be taken^(AV) to Babylon and there they will remain until the day^(AW) I come for them,’ declares the Lord. ‘Then I will bring^(AX) them back and restore them to this place.’”

The False Prophet Hananiah

28 In the fifth month of that same year, the fourth year, early in the reign of Zedekiah^(AY) king of Judah, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur, who was from Gibeon,^(AZ) said to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people: ² “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will break the yoke^(BA) of the king of Babylon. ³ Within two years I will bring back to this place all the articles^(BB) of the Lord’s house that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon removed from here and took to Babylon. ⁴ I will also bring back to this place Jehoiachin^[c](BC) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the other exiles from Judah who went to Babylon,’ declares the Lord, ‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”^(BD)

⁵ Then the prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah before the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord. ⁶ He said, “Amen! May the Lord do so! May the Lord fulfill the words you have prophesied by bringing the articles of the Lord’s house and all the exiles back to this place from Babylon.^{(BE) 7} Nevertheless, listen to what I have to say in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people: ⁸ From early times the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague^(BF) against many countries and great kingdoms. ⁹ But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the Lord only if his prediction comes true.^(BG)”

¹⁰ Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke^(BH) off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it, ¹¹ and he said^(BI) before all the people, “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon off the neck of all the nations within two years.’” At this, the prophet Jeremiah went on his way.

¹² After the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ¹³ “Go and tell Hananiah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You have broken a wooden yoke, but in its place you will get a yoke of iron. ¹⁴ This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke^(BJ) on the necks of all these nations to make them serve^(BK) Nebuchadnezzar^(BL) king of Babylon, and they will serve him. I will even give him control over the wild animals.^(BM)’”

¹⁵ Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord has not sent^(BN) you, yet you have persuaded this nation to trust in lies.^{(BO) 16} Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth.^(BP) This very year you are going to die,^(BQ) because you have preached rebellion^(BR) against the Lord.’”

¹⁷ In the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah the prophet died.^(BS)

⁵⁹ This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah,^(A) the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah^(B) king of Judah in the fourth^(C) year of his reign. ⁶⁰ Jeremiah had written on a scroll^(D) about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. ⁶¹ He said to Seraiah, “When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. ⁶² Then say, ‘Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate^(E) forever.’ ⁶³ When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates.^{(F) 64} Then say, ‘So will Babylon sink to rise no more^(G) because of the disaster I will bring on her. And her people^(H) will fall.’”^(I)

The words of Jeremiah end^(J) here.